Tuesday, October 2, 2012

A theory

Somewhere, someone replaces their phone because it isn't working right.  They stuff it away on a shelf some place, maybe in a closet.  Because it's kinda a pain to deal with recycling electronics and there will be a drive at the kids' school one of these days. 

Time goes by until one day someone is checking their email.  There is a person in your area who is in search of a cordless phone.  They think "well, I'll be.  We've got that old phone in the closet."  A reply is emailed and said phone is left out on the porch to be retrieved after work. 

They have forgotten, of course, why it was in the closet to begin with.  So when it gets to my house it's new home it's charged but to no avail.  And its new owners are left with electronics to recycle and this old faithful. 
 Old faithful happens to be the replacement to the replacement phone. It was originally bought 12 years ago for $5 to go off to a dorm in the middle of a cornfield.  And it is gives a couple of small children an experience that their peers are missing out on - to get to play with the cord while Mom attempts to talk on the phone.  Oh, and they can hang up on her too! 

And the replacement to the replacement to the replacement phone? It is waiting for one more chance to see if we can get it to work.  I mean, those theoretical freecycle users. 

No comments: